Queen Mary protesting against the Commissioners appointed to inquire into her conduct. continue their honours, estates, and dignities to them appertaining. But if they should not be able to allege any reason of their doings, that then her highness would absolutely set her in her seat regal, and that by force of hostility if they should resist." Nothing could be plainer than this proposition. In any case it was declared to be Elizabeth's resolve to restore Mary to her throne: nothing could be more hollow and acquiescence. At the request of Elizabeth, she sent to demand that Huntley and Argyll, now at the head of a strong force and hastening to crush Murray before he could summon Parliament to proclaim them traitors, should cease hostilities. They obeyed; but Murray, whom Elizabeth promised to keep in check, immediately took advantage to assemble Parliament and pass a bill for their attainder and forfeitures. Maitland, generally so deceitful, on this occasion stood forward boldly for the barons; but, notwithstanding, the Archbishop of St. Andrew's, Lord Claud Hamilton, the Bishop of Ross, and others, became the victims of his vengeance. Murray followed up his advantage, marched out with a powerful force, overran Galloway and Annandale, and was only arrested by a peremptory order of Elizabeth to lay down his arms and appear at York, or she would liberate Mary and restore her at the head of an army, as an innocent person whom he dared not to meet. There was no possibility of further delay; Murray, therefore, appointed his commissioners-the Earl of Morton, the Bishop of Orkney, Lord Lindsay, and the commendator of Dunfermline, who were to be assisted by Maitland, Buchanan, and Makgill. Elizabeth appointed, as hers, the Duke of Norfolk, the Earl of Sussex, and Sir Ralph Sadler. Maitland, at this juncture, whilst engaged on the part of Murray, sent Mary copies of the letters which Murray intended to present against her, and begged her to say what he could do to assist her. She replied, that he should use his influence to abate the rigour of Murray, influence the Duke of Norfolk as much as possible in her favour, and rely on the Bishop of Ross as her sincere friend. She then named, on her part, the said Bishop of Ross, the Lords Herries, Boyd, Livingstone, the abbot of Kilwinning, Sir John Gordon of Lochinvar, and Sir John Cockburn of Stirling. The commissioners, Murray attending in person with his own, met at York, on the 4th of October. Some obstruction of business was occasioned by the Duke of Norfolk insisting that, as the regent had consented to plead before Elizabeth, he must first do homage to the English crown. This was refused, and was, therefore, waived. This step discovered the desire of Elizabeth to seize on this occasion to achieve what none of her ancestors could accomplish-the acknowledgment of the feudal vassalage of Scotland. The next betrayed the duplicity of her promises to the two parties. Mary's commissioners claimed that the engagement of Elizabeth to place Mary on the throne of Scotland in any case, should appear in their powers; and Murray's, on the contrary, pleaded the queen's promise that if Mary were pronounced guilty she should remain a prisoner. These contradictory powers were granted, and Mary's commissioners opened the conference with their charges that Murray and his associates had rebelliously risen in arms against their lawful sovereign, had deposed and imprisoned her, and compelled her to seek justice from her royal kinswoman. boldly of complicity with Bothwell and the murderers, Being now in possession of Murray's charges, Elizabe These conferences were opened in the painted chan br at Westminster, the commissioners of Mary refusing > meet in any judicial court; and, acting on the instr tion of their queen, they at once demanded the admis of Mary to Elizabeth's presence, on the reasonable that that privilege had been granted to Murray. T was again declined, on the old ground that Mary Murray was now called upon to reply, but, instead of first clear herself; and on the retirement of the comme openly and boldly stating his reasons for the course he sioners it was demanded of Murray to put in his acess had pursued, and of producing and substantiating, as tion in writing, Bacon, the lord-keeper, assuring Elizabeth hoped and expected, the charges of her partici- that, if Mary were found guilty, she should be e pating in her husband's murder, which he had so long delivered to him, or kept safe in England. To and loudly vaunted, he solicited a private interview with Murray replied, that he had prepared his written acces the English commissioners, before whom he stated his tion, but that before he would give it in he must have defence. In this defence, to the unmitigated astonish-assurance, under the hand of Elizabeth, that she w ment and disappointment of Elizabeth and her ministers, pronounce judgment. On this Cecil said, "Where he made no charge against Mary of participation in the your accusation?" and Murray's secretary, Wood, tak: murder of Darnley; but reiterated the charges against it imprudently from his bosom, replied, "Here it is her of marrying Bothwell, and the danger thereby in- here it must remain till we have the queen's writte curred by the prince. Nor was this all: Mary's commis-assurance." But whilst he spoke the paper was snatche sioners did not so far excuse him; they accused him from his hand by Bothwell, Bishop of Orkney, w rushed over the table, pursued by Wood, and handed it to the English commissioners. It was received amid roars of laughter, and Cecil, who had now gained his great object, became radiant with exultation. The confusion of the scene was extraordinary; Lord William Howard, a blunt sea-officer, shouting aloud in his glee, and Maitland whispering to Murray that he had ruined his cause for ever. But as there was now no going back, the paper was read, and found to contain the broadest and most direct charge against Mary, not only for being an accomplice in the murder of her husband, but even of inciting Bothwell to it, and then marrying the murderer. This was totally different to Murray's former declaration to the English ministers; but it was now backed by a similar one from Lord Lennox, demanding vengeance for the death of his son. No sooner did the commissioners of the Queen of Scots hear this than they most indig 459 the exhibitors of them the real murderers, and expose them to all Christian princes as liars and traitors. This most reasonable request was refused, and Elizabeth, having now all she wanted, delivered by her council this extraordinary decision:-That neither against the Queen of Scotland, nor against Murray, had any convincing charge of crime, on the one hand, or treason on the other, been shown. That the Queen of England saw no cause to conceive an ill opinion of her good sister of Scotland. It was conceded that Mary should have copies of the papers in the casket, on condition that she should reply to them, which she consented to do, provided that Murray and her accusers were detained to abide the consequence. This, however, did not suit the object of Elizabeth: Murray and his associates were permitted to retire to Scotland; but it was declared that, on many grounds, the Queen of Scots must be detained in England. From first to last, it must be pronounced, that the nantly condemned the conduct of the English commissioners, declared themselves prepared to prove that Murray and his friends themselves were the actual authors, and some of them the perpetrators of the murder. They demanded instant admittance to the presence of Elizabeth; complained loudly of the breach of the contract that nothing should be received in prejudice of their queen's honour, in her absence; demanded the instant arrest of the authors of the foul charge, and, on that being refused, broke off the conference. Here, indeed, the conference really ceased. Elizabeth, spite of the withdrawal of Mary's commissioners, summoned Murray to produce his proofs; and the pretended love-letters and sonnets, of which Elizabeth had already had copies, were spread before her commissioners. The originals of these celebrated documents have long disappeared, but the copies which remained have been evidently tampered with, and have been pronounced most suspicious by all who have examined them. Mary, on hearing this, demanded by her commissioners the right to see these papers, declaring that she would prove whole transaction on the part of Elizabeth was of the most arbitrary and unjustifiable character. The plainest principles of justice demanded that Mary should be admitted, if not to the presence of the queen, at least face to face with her accusers; that whatever was advanced against her should undergo the most public and rigorous scrutiny; and that the accused queen should have every opportunity afforded her of replying to such infamous charges against her. All this, notwithstanding her constant demands and remonstrances, was systematically and persistently refused; and still, after the extraordinary announcement by the Privy Council of England that no charge was sustained against the Queen of Scots, nor any which had been preferred were of such weight as to influence the Queen of England's opinion of Mary, to determine on the detention of Mary was yet a more violent breach of all right and honour. Murray, on the 10th of January, 1569, was permitted to return home; but it was not so easy to perceive how he was to get there alive. His notorious breach of faith with the Duke of Norfolk had enraged that nobleman, who, as lord warden of the northern marches, had all the military force of that quarter of the kingdom in his hands, and who determined not to suffer him to pass alive. If by any means he could escape from this danger, on the other side of the borders the friends of Mary were in arms and burning with indignation against him. Mary had appointed the Duke of Chatelherault and the Earls of Huntley and Argyll as lieutenants, and Lord Boyd and other powerful barons were zealous in her cause. All the south of Scotland swarmed with her enraged partisans, and Murray and any force which he could assemble to meet them must inevitably be crushed. Yet from this apparently insurmountable danger the wily and supple genius of the man relieved him. He made fresh overtures to the Duke of Norfolk, expressed the deepest regret for the part which he had been compelled to take against Mary, but protested that he had never altered his opinion as to the excellence of the arrangement for the marriage betwixt the duke and her. He declared that he still regarded it as a measure of the highest advantage to both kingdoms, and expressed himself ready to promote it to the utmost of his power. The duke, who was extremely ambitious of the match, was moved, and Murray at once opened communication with the Bishop of Ross, who proposed it to Mary; and so completely did he convince all parties of his earnestness, that Norfolk procured him a loan of £5,000 from Elizabeth, and sent the strictest orders to the north that the regent should not be obstructed or molested in any manner on his journey. Mary at the same time dispatched similar orders to her adherents in Scotland, and Murray proceeded in the utmost quiet to Edinburgh. Once there, he threw off the mask. He called an immediate convention of the states at Stirling, procured a ratification of his proceedings in England, and ordered a speedy muster of forces in every quarter of the kingdom. It was in vain that the friends of Mary attempted to oppose him his movements were so rapid and wellobeyed, that, though they proclaimed him a traitor and usurper, they were speedily compelled to come to terms with him. It was agreed that the nobles in the interest of Mary should disband their forces and return to their estates till the 10th of April, when they should meet at Edinburgh for the settlement of the affairs of the country. They complied with this, and Murray liberated the prisoners which he had taken at Langside, but he took care not to disband his own forces. At a meeting at Stirling, Lord Herries, the Earl of Cassillis, and the Archbishop of St. Andrew's placed themselves in Murray's hands as hostages; and no sooner had they done this than Murray marched towards the borders and chastised their adherents in that quarter. When the meeting took place at Edinburgh, on the 10th of April, Murray demanded that the Duke of Chatelherault should acknowledge the king, which he refused until the questions relating to the queen had first been publicly discussed and settled; and on this refusal Murray arrested the duke and Lord Herries, and sent them to the castle of Edinburgh. This arbitrary act occasiond much resentment in the country; but it intimidated his two most powerful opponents, Argyll and Huntley, who held the western and northern highlands. They had refused to sign the late treaty, but they now saw him supported by England, and at the head of a powerful army. They therefore soun came to terms with him; and having received hostage: from Huntley, he immediately marched into the hilands; and levying heavy fines on all who had risen in favour of the queen, vigorously reduced the clans to swear allegiance to the young king, and returned triumphant and enriched by the expedition. Meantime Elizabeth had removed Mary farther from the Scottish border. She evidently doubted the security of the Queen of Scots so near her Scottish subjects, and in a part of the country so extremely Popish. Mary, c her part, was quite sensible of the views of Elizabeth and protested against going farther into the interior : the country. She did not hesitate to express her opin that it was the intention of Cecil to make away with . But resistance on her part was now hopeless. She in the hands of a powerful and unscrupulous wor who every day felt more and more the difficult post: in which she had placed herself by thus making her the gaoler, against all right and honour, of an indep dent queen. She sent express orders to Scroope 11 Knollys to permit no person to approach the Queen Scots who was likely to dissuade her from her remov and furnished them with a list of such well-affect gentlemen as should attend her on her way through different counties. On the 26th of January, in wintry weather, Mary and her attendants were obliga to quit Bolton Castle, and, mounted on miserable h to take their way southward. On the 2nd of Febr they reached Ripon, and thence proceeded to Tut Castle, a ruinous house, belonging to the Earl of Shre bury, who was now her keeper. The castle lay above the valley of the Dove, and was a wretched for a crowned head; and Mary was watched and gr with the utmost anxiety lest some of her partisans find means of communicating with her. Nicholas WE afterwards Master of the Rolls in Ireland, visited b there, and wrote to Cecil that, if he might give alr there should be few subjects of this land have access conference with her; for, he observed, "beside that is a goodly personage, she hath withal an alluring a pretty Scottish speech, and a searching wit clondemildness. Fame might move some to relieve her; glory, joined to gain, might stir others to venture L-for her sake." But not only were the Roman Catholic subjec Elizabeth greatly discontented with the detention of Scottish queen, whom Elizabeth had again remove Wingfield Manor, in Derbyshire, in April, but the reigns of the continent remonstrated with Elizabe:: the injustice of treating a crowned head-as m sovereign as herself as a captive and a criminal she feeling that she had now little cause to fear th replied that they were labouring under a mistake → so far was she from treating the Queen of Scotscaptive, she was giving her refuge and protection ag her rebellious subjects, who sought her life, and laidmost grievous crime to her charge. The Duke of Norfolk, and the Earls of Arundel Pembroke, as friends of Mary, were extremely host Cecil, regarding him as the real mover and influenc the queen against her. They succeeded in securing – A.D. 1509.] PROPOSED MARRIAGE OF MARY AND THE DUKE OF NORFOLK. 461 The iconoclasts were at length interrupted in their work by the Duchess of Parma, who fell upon them near Antwerp, and defeated them with great slaughter. Philip dispatched the notorious Duke of Alva to take vengeance on the turbulent heretics, and overran the Netherlands with his butcheries. The Prince of Orange retired to his province of Nassau, but Horne and Egmont were seized and cast into prison. favour of Leicester to their design against him, who ventured to lay their complaints, as the complaints of the country, before Elizabeth, representing the clamour against the measures of Cecil, and the belief that his policy was prejudicial to her reputation and injurious to the interests of the realm, as universal. Elizabeth defended her favourite minister with zeal; but the politic Cecil was struck with a degree of alarm at their combination, which might have eventually proved formidable, The Huguenots in France, alarmed at this success of had they not stumbled on the scheme of marrying Nor- Alva, and believing that he was appointed to carry into folk to Mary. The results of that scheme, however, we execution the secret league of Bayonne, for compelling must postpone till we have noticed some anterior affairs. the Protestants of France, Spain, and Flanders, to give We have seen how Elizabeth assisted the Huguenots up their religion or their lives, rose under Condé, and in France. In the Netherlands she was not the less attempted to seize the king, Charles IX., at Monceaux. active. The commercial natives of these countries had Charles, however, was rescued by his Swiss guards, who, not only grown rich under the mild sway of the Dukes of surrounding him in a body, beat off the Huguenots, and Burgundy, but they had exercised privileges which did conducted him in safety to Paris. There, he was, nevernot accord with the bigoted and despotic notions of Philip theless, a prisoner, till he was released by the defeat of II. Not only Protestants but Romanists murmured at the Huguenots at the battle of St. Denis, where his his harsh and arbitrary government. The latter com- principal general, the constable Montmorency, was plained that opulent abbeys in the possession of natives killed. Condé had fallen in the battle of Jarnac. Norris, were dissolved to form bishoprics for Spaniards. The the English ambassador, was accused of giving encourageProtestants groaned under a stern persecution, and every class of subjects beheld with horror and disgust the Spanish Inquisition introduced. Not only Protestants but Papists united in a league to put down this odious institution. The league, from including both religious parties, was named the Compromise, and the Prince of Orange and the Counts Egmont and Horne took the lead in it. The Duchess of Parma, who governed the country, gave way to the storm, and abolished the Inquisition, which had the effect of separating the Roman Catholics from the Protestants. The latter deemed it necessary, when thus deserted, to conduct their Worship with arms in their hands; and the duchess, alarmed at this hostile attitude, issued a proclamation, torbidding all such assemblies. In Antwerp, and other Lities where the English and German Protestants greatly abounded, no notice was taken of her proclamation; but it was resolved no longer to remain on the defensive, but to carry the war into the enemy's quarters. The people, assembling in April, 1567, in vast crowds, roceeded to demolish the images and altars in the hurches, and even to pull the churches down. On the east of the Assumption, as the priests were carrying an mage of the Virgin through the streets, the crowd made errible menaces against it, and the procession was glad hasten back to the church whence they had set out. But a few days after the people rushed to the cathedral, which was filled with rich shrines, treasures, and works f art, and closing all the doors, set systematically to fork to smash and destroy every image that it contained. mongst them was a famous crucifix, placed aloft, the fork of a famous artist, which they dragged down with opes, and knocked in pieces. The pictures, many of hem very valuable, they cut to shreds, and the altars ad shrines they tore down and utterly destroyed. From he desecrated cathedral they proceeded to the other hurches, where they perpetrated the same ruin, and hence to the convents and monasteries, driving the onks and nuns destitute into the streets. The example f Antwerp was zealously followed in every other rovince in the Netherlands, except in the Walloons. ment and aid to the insurgents, and the king was compelled to make a treaty with his armed subjects. In the spring of 1568, 3,000 of these French Huguenots marched into Flanders, to join the Prince of Orange, who had taken the field against Alva. After various successes, the prince, at the close of the campaign, was obliged to retreat across the Rhine. Throughout these struggles, both in France and Belgium, Elizabeth lent much aid and encouragement in the shape of money; but, with her usual caution, she would take no public part in the contest, and all the while professed herself the friend of Philip, and most hostile to all rebellions. The summer of this year was distinguished by a remarkable scheme for the marriage of the Duke of Norfolk to the Queen of Scots, which ended fatally for that nobleman, and increased the rigour of Mary's incarceration. The scheme was said to have originated in the ever busy brain of Maitland. Murray fell into it, probably under the idea that Mary would then content herself with living in England, and leave the government of Scotland in his hands; or it might have entered into his calculations that it would, on discovery, so exasperate Elizabeth, as to lead to what it did, the closer imprisonment of the Queen of Scots, which would be equally acceptable to him. Elizabeth was not long in catching the rumours of this plot, and she burst out on the duke in her fiercest style; but Norfolk had the art to satisfy her of the folly of such an idea, by replying that such a thing had, indeed, been suggested to him, but that it was not a thing likely to captivate him, who loved to sleep on a safe pillow. The plan, however, went on, and from one motive or another, it eventually included amongst its promoters the Earls of Pembroke, Arundel, Bedford, Shrewsbury, Northumberland, and Westmoreland. Leicester and Throckmorton were induced to embrace it, and even Cecil was made aware of it, and favoured it. In Scotland, Murray, Maitland, the Bishop of Ross, Lord Boyd, were favourable to the measure; and Mary was sounded on the subject, and professed her readiness to be divorced from Bothwell; but as to marriage, from her past sorrowful experience, would |